Electric hearing apparatus for the deaf



Aug. 28, 1934. A, VON SUCHORZYNSKI 1,971,630

ELECTRIC HEARING APPARATUS FOR THE DEAF Filed Dec. 4, 1931 ga- "llllllllll/llllll/ Patented Aug. 1934.

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Application Decemberd, 1931,8611! No. 578,963

In Germany February 17, 1931 All known electric hearing apparatuses transunit the sound waves like a telephone through the air in the ear passage on to the tympanum ot a deaf person. In most cases sclerose, that is B cartilaginiflcation .or calcination of the joints or the auditory ossicles is the cause of the Qdeafness. The auditory ossicles have more or less lost their .1 ,normal capabilityot vibrating, so that speech and v musicalsounds are more or less indistinctly heard by the deaf person. Greater intensity of sound of the known electrical hearing apparatuses cannot overcome this objection, and consequently many 'deoif persons have no appreciable advantage from these hosting npparstuses. w l'he present invention overcomes this objection inthet the air in the auditory passage does not serve as sound tronsmitter, but instead-oi same an elastic thin element is fitted in theispsce of the oudito ry possoge in direct contact with the m pon and with the ouditoiw ossicie's and trs osmits the vibrations oithe. electric appsratuo. These vibrotions are first transformed into sound waves by the tsmpsnum, conduc ed through the chain of the auditory ossicles to e W labyrinth and only the perceived as sound by the auditory nerves. At th" same time an automatic peronent me tais s it-tee so that the joints or the auditory ossicles'are grsdually loosened and rendered more movable. As soon as this has been I0 attained, the disting sharpness of speech and music will increase, and the deaf person will hear more distinctly.

As is known, the vibrations of a struck tuningiorlr, the handle of which is held on the head bones "or on good teeth of a deal-person, are easily perceived astone by the auditory nerves of this person. This proceeding is called a. molecular-sound vtronsmission through the bone mass of the head to the hearing nerves of the labyrinth. (It is easily 0 .lapparent that a vibrating elastic body can transmit the sound waves more strongly and better by means 05 contact with the tympanum and the auditory ossicles than'in the contact with the head net. The two magnets are situated with their like poles opposite, so that in the case of like directed electric.currents the magnets mutually repel one another, whereby the electric vibrations of the armature without diaphragm withthe thin rod movedthereon become effective corresponding to the sound reception oithe microphone.

- Several embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawing in whicho- I Fig. 1 shows the hearing apparatus inserted in the ear, the hearing apparatus being in side velevation and the ear in section.

Fig. 2 shows the hearing apparatus in o central vertical section, a pot-draped magnet being -used.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinol control section of s. simpier form of magnet.

Fig. i is c. section on line EV-IV oi Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section, shoring o to special construction of the rod.

Fig. 6 is-a longitudinol section oi a special form at construction of theportion oi the rod 'be against the tvmpenum.

In the dra the apparatus has a cop A so. adapted tothe shape of the shell of the ear, so that itis tightly held in the ear. In this esp a pot-shaped magnet is arranged, the coil 1 of which acts as aimsture the pot 2 being slipped over the not 3 or a magnet coil 4. A bolt 5 of so the armature coil 1 projects into a sleeve s of the magnet coil and between the pot 2 and the ture magnet 1. This resilient rod 8 terminates, in.

b A t t t t tm labyrinth the construction illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5, in

Swell, in the event of the auditory bones being and with tympanum removed bvoperation. would, nearer the hearing nerves, be considerably more eilective than through the head a spoon 9, the raised portion. of which is 0021- structed as a. conical point 10, the conicity or the spoon being smaller than the conicity ot-ithe natural tympanum. A rubber rod is preferab used as resilient rod, and according to the form of construction illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 a steel wire is embedded in the rubber rod 8. This steel wire makes it possible,.to give to the rubber rod 8 anydesired curvature and angular position adapted to the auditory passage in a simple manner, the rod 8 then retaining this position. no

This steel wire 11 only extends so far'toward's the spoon 9 that the elasticity of the spoon is ensured at the bend.

In the form of construction illustrated in Fig. 5 6, the rubber rod 8 terminates in a spherical hollow body .12. This construction enables an etfective'contact of the rubber'rod with the long labyrinth wall, in the event ofthe tympanum and the auditory bones being lacking.

In the form of construction illustrated in Fig. 3 a simple electromagnet' 13 is arranged in the cap and is brought into conductive connection with agnicrophone 14, by means of a cable 15, and an armature 1'? is resiliently suspended in 15 front of the core 16 of the electromagnet 13, on

which armature the resilient rod 8 is fixed.

In all the different constructions of the resilient rod 8 and its bearing element 9, 12, the rod is fixed on the armature i or 17 so that the oscillations of the armature, caused by the current impulses occurring in the electromagnets, are transmitted to the tympanum and the auditery bonesin their full extent through the intermediary of the rod 8.

I claim:-

1 an electric hearing apparatus for the deaf, comprising in combination a telephone, consistingoi a; magnet and a shiftable armature, and a thlnresilient rod fixed on said armature adapt! 5;: ed to be inserted into the space of the auditory DB- 8888151) :tothe tympanum and to contact with this latter, to transmit the movements of said. armature to the auditory members of the ear, and a rubber packing between said armature and saidmagnet adapted to resiliently support said armature on said magnet and to resiliently limit thetampiitude of oscillation of said armature.

2. An electric hearing apparatus, comprising in combination a small not having an external annular groove, a large pot loosely slipped over said small pot and having an internal annular groove, two coils one in each of said pots adapted to mutuallyattract and repulse each other to impart oscillating movements to said large pot, a thin resilient rod on said large pot adapted. to be inserted in the space of the auditory passage up to the tympanum and tocontact with this latter to impart the oscillating movements of said large pot thereto, and a rubber ring arranged in the annular grooves in said pots adapted to resiliently connect said two pots.

3. An electric hearing apparatus as specified in claim 1, comprising in combination with the resilient rod, a small spoon-shaped body terniinating in a conical point of smaller conicity than the oonicity of the natural tympanum to obtain a good contact with the tympanum.

4. In an electric hearing apparatus as specified in claim 1 the resilient rod comprising in combination a thin bendable steel wire adapted to be bent to the shape of the ear passage, and a rubber case surrounding said wire and adapted to form a resilient contact with the auditory member of the ear.

5. In an electric hearing apparatus as specified in claim 1, the rod comprising in combination a bendable wire adapted to be bent to the shape of the ear passage, a rubber case surrounding said wire; and a hollow spherical extension on the end of said case adaptedto form a resilient bearing against the auditory members or the ANTON VON SUCHORZYNSE. 

